FOUR senior public
officials, including two directors in the Ministry of Transport and
Infrastructural Development, have been suspended for trying to block
investigations into the abuse of State funds for the rehabilitation of rural
roads, it has emerged.
The directors are Ms Angeline Karonga, legal director
and Engineer Eric Gumbie, who is director of roads. Ms Karonga and Eng Gumbie
also face separate charges of foisting companies in which they are directors as
contractors on various road authorities.
Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) technical
director Engineer Moses Juma and Goromonzi RDC chief executive officer Mr Trust
Madhovi have also been suspended.
Government’s investigating team was appointed in terms of
Section 46 (2) of the Procurement Act after the Office of the President and
Cabinet (OPC) directed the State Procurement Board (SPB) to commission an
investigation into various contracts flagged in a forensic report on Zinara by
Grant Thornton.
The team —comprising officials from the SPB, the Auditor-General’s
Office and the National Economic Conduct Inspectorate (NECI) — reviewed the
procurement process of tender awards under Zinara’s special projects valued at
$71,5 million and R31,5 million ($2,5 million) covering a five-year period from
2011 to 2016.
It is believed the investigations remain inconclusive as
“some officers implicated in the contracts under review” hold influential
positions that enable them to frustrate investigators.
Information gathered by The Herald indicates that the
suspensions follow letters written by SPB executive chairperson Ambassador
Buzawani Mothobi on August 22, 2017 to the Ministry of Transport, Zinara and
the Ministry of Rural Development, Preservation of National Culture and
Heritage.
The SPB boss specifically recommended the suspension of the
officials for being uncooperative during investigations.
Section 46(6) of the Procurement Act provides specific
sanctions for anyone who hinders investigations without just cause.
It is alleged that Ms Karonga and Civil Aviation Authority
of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) chief executive officer Mr David Chaota are co-directors in
Akodec, a company that features prominently as a contractor for road works that
were funded by Zinara.
Eng Gumbie’s firm, Tencraft, is reportedly involved in some
of the questionable tenders.
According to a preliminary report on the investigation of
special projects funded by Zinara for various road authorities, which is dated
August 21, 2017, Zinara’s Engineer Juma was accused of being “at the centre of
the improper engagements of various contractors for the implementation of
contracts by road authorities”.
The 22-page preliminary report – compiled by investigators
based on procurement processes at RDCs in Gutu, Zaka and Goromonzi – details
how officials seemingly violated tender procedures in order to milk State
funds.
Engineer Juma, who was then Zinara regional engineer
(Northern), is mainly accused of forcing Gutu RDC council chairperson Mr Daniel
Jinga and former roads and works planning chairperson Mr Emmanuel Toperesu to
engage a company called Fremus in May 2011 for the rehabilitation of a
31-kilometre stretch of road without the knowledge and consent of council CEO,
Mr Alexanda Mutembwa.
When an attempt was made to rescind the irregular contract,
it is believed that Engineer Juma threatened to withdraw funding for the
project.
Section 30 and 31(2) of the Procurement Act as read with
Sections 4,5,6 and 7 of the Procurement Regulations 2002 require a competitive
process for the selection of a contractor.
It is alleged that the contract did not have a detailed
scope of works nor a contract sum.
The deal also resulted in seemingly irregular payments.
About $150 000 was paid to Fremus by Zinara on February 17,
2011 before the RDC had resolved to adopt the contract.
Overall, Gutu RDC raised interim payment certificates
(IPCs) worth $1,7 million that were paid to the contractor, but Zinara’s ledger
shows that they had made total payments of $2 million, giving a variance of
$316 000.
In a normal procurement process, a contractor raises an
IPC, which the RDC engineer and CEO certify and approve before it is forwarded
to Zinara.
It is only after a road technician from Zinara certifies
the work that a payment is processed.
“The variance of $315 722,67 shows an overpayment done by
Zinara to Fremus which could be a potential prejudice to the State,” reads part
of the report.
“Gutu RDC alleged that they never signed IPC 1 and 3 and
only managed to provide IPC 2,4,5 and 6. They referred the investigation team
to Zinara offices for copies of the missing IPC’s which they used to make
payments to the contractor. However, Zinara could not provide the team with the
supporting documentation they used to make the payments to the contractor.”
Accounting officers, through Section 35(1) of the
Procurement Act and Section 6 (3) of the Procurement Regulations, are required
to retain records for accounting purposes.
Fremus was also reportedly forced on Zaka RDC in September
2011 and again the contract did not have a contract sum or a scope of works.
According to the report, Zinara overpaid for the works by
more than $205 000.
It also suspiciously made an additional payment of $156 519
“for the mobilisation of additional works” after Fremus applied for a contract
variation on December 31, 2011 to include a 5,1- kilometre stretch on the
Chivamba-Chipfunde-Svuure road.
The report says: “A further analysis of the interim payment
certificates (IPCs) provided by Zaka RDC had a total of $1 754 635.70, whereas
Zinara ledger showed that they had made total payment of $1 844 011.47 to
Fremus which gives a variance (overpayment of) $89 365.77.”
In 2013, Fremus later wrote a letter to Zaka RDC claiming
that they did not factor in Value Added Tax (VAT) charges on their initial
contracts, which amounts Zinara duly paid without questioning.
The same procurement violations were observed in Goromonzi
RDC, where companies such as Twalumba, Bermipool and Tencraft (Engineer
Gumbie’s company) were engaged.
The contracts were mainly for five projects – Atlanta Road,
Eton-Renari Road, Eton-Remari Road, Bosha and St John Road and resurfacing of
Eton.
Again there are suspicions that project costs were
inflated. Crucial documents also remain unaccounted for.
The probe team is also interested in details of the
procurement of raw materials (bitumen and aggregates) for two Asphalt plants –
in Harare and Bulawayo – that are owned by the Ministry of Transport.
Between 2011 and 2016, more than $25 million was paid to 22
companies for the services, including for expenses directly attributable to the
management of the two plants.
Government has doubled its efforts to weed out corruption
in the public sector to promote the judicious use of taxpayer’s funds. Herald
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